Tornado GR4

Tornado GR4 is a highly capable frontline aircraft, iconic for its impressive swing role capabilities.

Tornado has been a vital part of air forces from the day it went in to service in 1979; through a combination of upgrade packages and capability improvements Tornado is just as important today as it was then. The aircraft is currently in active service for the RAF in Iraq and Syria.

Built as part of a consortium between the UK, Germany and Italy the Tornado is a formidable aircraft that is renowned for its ability to operate in any weather conditions, at low level at any time of the day or night.

With a max speed of 1.3 Mach and an expansive range of integrated weaponry including Paveway IV, Tornado is still the frontline aircraft for our customers, more than 30 years after its entry in to service.

As well as being in service for the three partner nations who developed Tornado, it was exported to the Royal Saudi Air Force, and is still in use by them today.

REDUCE TO PRODUCE (RTP)

Following the withdrawal of the RAF’s Tornado F3 fleet from service in 2010, BAE Systems created the Reduce to Produce programme. The scheme, based at RAF Leeming, strips down the decommissioned F3 fleet and recycles parts that can be used as spares for the UK’s in-service GR4 fleet.

The scheme was designed to help cut costs on support for the Tornado Squadrons whilst still maintaining a fully comprehensive spares supply chain for the aircrafts. It has been a resounding success since its introduction with the teams able to recover between 800-1200 parts per airframe; creating a huge saving for the RAF.